THE RITUAL USE OF BRUGMANSIA SPECIES IN TRADITIONAL ANDEAN MEDICINE IN NORTHERN PERU 1

VINCENZO DE FEO

Via Ponte don Melillo, 84084 Fisciano, Salerno, Italy; e-mail defeo@unisa.it). THE RITUAL USE OF BRUGMANSIA SPECIES INTRADITIONAL ANDEAN MEDICINE INNORTHERN PERU. Economic Botany 58(Supplement):S22I-S229, 2004. This paper reports the use of Brugmansia species (Solanaceae) in traditional practices of shamans (curanderos) of Northern Peruvian Andes. The field study permitted the classification of a number of species and/or their hybrids used for both curative and psychotropic activities. There is evidence of a folk systematics in this genus that constitutes a very important phenomenon for its therapeutic-divinatory, phytotherapeutical, and ritual (in initiation and black magic rites) uses.
Key Words: Ethnobotany; traditional Andean medicine; Brugmansia.

De Feo, Vincenzo (Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche, Universita degli Studi di Salerno,

Since ancient times humans have utilized plants not only as food sources, but also as part of their ritual and healing practices. In most preliterate cultures, along with medicinal plants, a central role in therapeutic rites is played by "magical plants," most of which are represented by hallucinogenic species. The use of these plants is socially accepted and often there is a close relationship between the supernatural and the altered states of consciousness produced by hallucinogenic plants. These species, in fact, are seen as intermediaries between the human world and that of supernatural forces. It was hypothesized that psychoactive plants have been responsible for the origin of the concept of the sacred (Furst 1972; La Barre 1972). For these reasons, the knowledge and the practice of using plants for healing rituals assumed a special characteristic: often it is secretly kept and conveyed by shamans, priests and other religious figures, who are very knowledgeable about herbs and who combine their botanical, phytotherapeutical and toxicological knowledge with religious elements and rituals based on magic, superstition and ancestral beliefs (De Feo 1992). Several objectives of the rituals are centred on psychoactive species. Sacramental practices imply the intention of establishing contact with the sacred to produce ecstasy. Divinatory rituals are carried out
I Received 06 December 2003; accepted 01 February 2004.

quickly to enable the shaman to detect the origin and treatment of a disorder or the whereabouts of a missing object or person. Finally, in the context of magic and sorcery, there are rituals for the purpose of inflicting harm, purification, and exorcism, which involves the internal or external use of plants (Diaz 1979). In rural communities of the Northern Peruvian Andes the shaman (curandero) assumes a pivotal role; he is considered an intermediate between our world and the world of spiritual forces and is an expert on medicinal, harmful and psychotropic species used to awaken religious spirits or to gain altered states of mind (De Feo 2003). The Andean shamans associate the action of these plants with a supernatural depersonalization or dissociation of body and spirit. This conception has been reported for other cultures (McLaughlin 1973). Reported in this study are the plants used by the curanderos of the Northern Peruvian Andes in a high-altitude lake area that stretches from the city of Ayabaca (about 2900 m above sea-level) to Lake Prieta. It is important to emphasize that this area is a sacred zone, claimed to be very effective for therapeutic-magic rituals, due to the presence of particularly strong spiritual forces (De Feo 1992, 2003; De Feo et al. 2002). The most important psychoactive plants in traditional practices of the Northern Peruvian Andes are the cacti Trichocereus pachanoi Britt. et Rose and T. peruvianus Britt. et Rose (San

Economic Botany 58(Supplement) pp. S221-S229. 2004 2004 by The New York Botanical Garden Press, Bronx, NY 10458-5126 U.S.A.

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Pedro). These cacti contain mescaline (Agurell 1969; Poisson 1969) and other phenethylamine derivatives (Shulgin 1979; Smith 1977). The use of San Pedro cactus has been fairly well documented in the scientific literature on Andean shamanism in Northern Peru (De Feo 2003; Polia 1988). Very few reports are available in the ethnobotanical literature on other hallucinogenic plants that are commonly used in association with San Pedro cacti. Recently, we reported the use of some hallucinogenic plants in magic-therapeutic practices of Northern Peru (De Feo 2003). Among these the most important appeared to be the use of species belonging to the genus Brugmansia, known locally as mishas. This paper focuses on the use of mishas for therapeutical and divinatory purposes in the provinces of Ayabaca and Huancabamba, Department of Piura.
METHODS

This field study was carried out for two consecutive years in the Provinces of Ayabaca and Huancabamba, Department of Piura, Northern Peru, in a zone between 4 30"-5 41" latitude S and 80 1"-79 20" longitude E. The altitude ranged from 2000 to 3700 m above sea level. Information was gathered through interviews with curanderos and through participation in the harvesting, preparation and administration of the vegetal drug in therapy. Samples of Brugmansia species utilized in traditional therapy were collected for possible phytochemical and/or pharmaceutical studies. A set of voucher herbarium specimens (identified by initials and listed in parentheses following common names in this paper) has been deposited in the Pharmaceutical Botany Chair at the University of Salerno, Italy. Taxonomic determinations were performed at the herbarium of the Museo de Historia Natural, Lima.
RESULTS

Andean shamans in Northern Peru (Maestros curanderos) use the word misha to refer to plants belonging to the Solanaceous genus Brugmansia (but also to the Datura genus) utilized in special rites. One of these mishas-i-fioripondio or huarhuar-was identified in 1959 by the ethnobotanist C. Friedberg (1959) as Datura arborea L., with no further specifications. Later, in 1961-1962, the same expert identified some mishas as being Brugmansia spp. (Friedberg

1963) and suggested that there may be an etymological link between the word misha and the terms mits-kay or mets-kway, indicating a Brugmansia species used by the Inga-speaking Indians in the Sibundoy valley (Southern Colombia). Another hypothesis is that the name misha, given to plants of the genus Brugmansia (and less frequently of the genus Datura) by Andean curanderos, probably comes from the Quechua. In modem Quechua in Cajamarca, misha means "variegated thing" (Quesada 1976). In contemporary shaman vocabulary, misha is also used for the San Pedro cacti with twin-colored flowers (red and white and white and purple), but is also commonly used as a synonym for hallucinogenic plant (Polia 1987). The curandero is often called enmishado, to show that he is receptive to the effects of mishas. In Huancabamba, misha is also a grain of maize with dark blue or reddish-brown stripes, and is considered a goodluck talisman. The maiz-misha is part of a very old category of natural phenomena that, being outside the general rule, such as twin parts, double fruits, or larger than usual or strange-shaped stones, etc., is considered to have a spiritual power. Also according to Friedberg (1959, 1963), the word jloripondio was used to designate Brugmansia species. It is, however, very old and goes back to the time of the Spanish Conquest. Bernabe Cobo (1653) used jloripondio to describe B. suaveolens: "This flower is the biggest of all those produced by trees and bushes, is beautiful to look at and is white; it is a palm in length and five points bend back from the very wide mouth . . . Their fragrance is so strong and intense that the must be sniffed from afar rather than from near at hand and only one of these flowers in a room perfumes so much as to be irritating and usually produces a headache . . . Everyone, Spaniards and Indians included, calls (this plant) floripondio" (Polia 1988). The curanderos on Northern Peru use Brugmansia species for the following purposes:
1. Therapeutic-divinatory. For this purpose leaves and flowers are used alone or with San Pedro cactus. 2, Phytotherapeutical. In this case the Brugmansia leaves are applied in various ways to the parts of the body affected. 3. Initiation rites. The juice, obtained by squashing particularly powerful wild Brugmansia species, is administered during spe-

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cial mmanon ceremonies, but only to shamans chosen on the grounds of psychophysical characteristics. 4. Illness. Given their strong and dangerous effects, Brugmansia species are only very rarely administered to sick people orally or in other ways. 5. Black magic. Brugmansias are used to bring out "damage by mouth." In this case massive doses often produce irreversible damage. Here we report the circumstances and instructions for the use of a number of mishas that we documented in the provinces of Ayabaca and Huancabamba during our field work. The interviews have been transcribed and contain descriptions of relevant therapeutic and ritual prescriptions.
MISHA TORO CURANDERA OR FLORIPONDIO OR HUAHUAR

Brugmansia sanguinea (R. et P.) D. Don Herbarium voucher DFIP/88122; DFIP/88/30. This plant is used externally (toxic internally) to relieve pain, especially in cases of arthritic inflammations and cramps. The ground leaves are wetted with alcohol or perfume and applied to the affected area overnight. Following this application, one must stay on a five-day diet without fats or meat. In addition, during this period, the patient should stay out of water (keep dry). The pulverized leaves are used as a vulnerary on sores and wounds. The tincture of leaves is claimed to have hallucinogenic effects when absorbed through the nasal mucous. The plant is also used during ritualistic ceremonies to help in divination. "Brugmansia sanguinea is used to cure rheumatism and skin rash. When combined with wine, agua florida and agua cananga (perfumes), it is used to induce dreaming (infusion). Before going to sleep, two leaves of the misha are tied in a cross on the nape of the neck and forehead with a handkerchief. Upon awakening, one drinks the juice of white maize mixed in cold water with lime, sugar and honey. Fire is avoided for five days, and a dieta de aliiio is followed, that is, mutton or chicken only, with no onions or red peppers. You mustn't drink alochol or see water. It's only to be used at night. You mustn't mal dormir (sleep badly) afterwards, that is, have sexual relation with a woman. You can lose your senses (trastomarse) or

the effect can stop. Seeing water breaks the effect and may cause mental distress. Many visions appear, such as dreams about many lost people and things, often identifying their locations. Since the flower is the force of the plant, it should be put in sweet white wine and sipped (singar) once through each nostril. While the plant is being gathered, it should be sprinkled (se escupe) with white sugar, wild honey and lime. " This misha is very helpful to "see": "You see a person with a good heart and one with an evil heart." By having its leaves tied in the shape of a cross on the forehead and nape, the plant is also used para aclarar, that is "to clear" the mind, which in jargon means "allows the vision." In the vision the spirit of the plant manifested itself as a bull (toro). It is said that in gathering this plant, the hands must be free of onion, garlic, pig lard, salt, alcohol and red pepper. The best period for gathering is when the plant is in flower and during the full moon. The infusion of the plant must not be taken orally.
MISHA RASTRERA

Brugmansia insignis (Barb.Rodr.) Lockwood, hybrid Herbarium voucher DFIP/88127 The whole or shredded leaves of this plant are used to relieve pain in cases of traumatic or rheumatic suffering. Because of its toxicity the plant should not be taken internally, but its effect may be interrupted by an antidote, the arranque. The name of this plant is associated with rastrear and rastreo, literally "to follow footsteps," a method of divination and shaman diagnosis of diseases using psychotropic substances. "It is used to rastrear illnesses and lost things and to foresee (predestinar) what will happen. The leaves are left to ferment in white wine for two days, after which one must drink a small glassful. The forehead, head, and nape of the neck are rubbed with the leaves from the infusion. One follows the same dieta as that for the misha toro. It is drunk at night, followed by drinking arranque in the morning. A weak person is given only one leaf; a stronger person is given one and half leaves. The leaves are rubbed (on the head), tied on with a handkerchief, while drinking the small glass and sipping through the nostril (singar). The plant has the same kind of leaves as the misha taro, but they are thinner,

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with red, pink and white flowers. The plant must be sprinkled with sugar and wild honey before the leaves are gathered." Other curanderos strengthen the solvent effect of the wine on the active agents in the leaves by adding sugar cane alcohol. This strengthened plant is "used to enhance dreaming by the curandero. The leaves are arranged in the shape of a cross and tied on the forehead or the nape of the neck. After twentyfour hours the effect is broken (se arranca) like the other mishas. It's used separately from the San Pedro, which is taken by itself. This misha has white flowers. The tree grows up to three metres. The fruit is long and smooth as a cucumber. The best months to gather it are when it blooms, as the plant is stronger. It is gathered with the full moon and early in the morning before sunrise. It's used to find lost things."
MISHA GALGA

Brugmansia aurea Lagerheim Herbarium voucher DFIP/88128 The leaves, applied externally on aching body parts, are claimed to relieve pains. The plant is also used to treat headaches, by absorption of the tincture (made of two flowers and one leaf in 1 liter of alcohol) through the nasal mucous and at the same time by rubbing the head and limbs with the same preparation. The plant is considered one of most potent mishas. Because of its claimed high toxicity, the plant is rarely used. In Spanish galgo is a hunting dog (from the old German galgr). We had surmised that galga had something to do with a "hunting dog," given that the latter follows the scent of its prey, just as the plant allowed the curandero to rastrear. Another hypothesis is that the name had nothing to do with a dog. It may be derived, therefore, from the Quechuajalka-"a cold high mountain area"-given that some mishas cannot be cultivated and have to be gathered in mountainous places where they grow in the wild, and also acquire greater magical properties because of their barren surroundings. "It is used particularly for aches in the bones. It can be used with timolina (a disinfectant made from essence of thyme), agua florida, and alcohol, depending on the illness. The leaves are kept in an infusion and then tied with a bandage to the affected part of the body. The misha, taro curandera, is used mainly for treating the sick,

but misha galga is used for black magic purposes (para la hecizeriat, by sprinkling it with other plants such as rue and pronouncing the name of a person (the victim). For dreaming, only one leaf is tied to the forehead and used for rastreo. When gathering the herbs, they are offered, (because) the plants hear man and tremble. When they are offered they no longer do any harm (to those gathering them)." The plant is also useful in divination: "to see one ties two leaves in a cross to the forehead and the nape of the neck, always with agua florida and agua cananga. You drink San Pedro (decoction) and that is when you tie the leaves. The plant has white, yellow, gold and purple flowers, hence, misha (variegated). After using it you drink arranque and follow the same diet as for misha taro." "In Huancabamba some curanderos compare huarhuar (Datura sp.) with misha, but it isn't the same thing. The flower colour is a whitish yellow, melon color. While it is used like misha curandera, the therapeutical content of the galga is faster. This plant changes into a hunting dog tperro galgo)."
MISHA OCULTADORA

Brugmansia sp. Herbarium voucher DFIP/88/39 "There is only one kind of flower but with different colors. This is the first plant to reply to all the questions you ask. You drink two (macerated) leaves in water from the Black Lagoon, leaving it to infuse for forty-three hours. You drink a little from a glass in the evening. It is called ocultadora because it hides the truth from liars. To see, you tie the leaves in a cross. You follow the same diet for three days as with the other mishas without looking at fire. In the morning you drink white maize (one of the parts of the arranque). You can pick it from six in the evening on. You must plant it and let it get used to the place so that it does what you want. The plant defends the house and people, but attacks anyone offending it. To gather it you make offerings of wine, honey, lime and sugar and you say to it: 'Respect all that I ask you'."
MISHA COLAMBO (SNAKE)

Brugmansia suaveolens (Willd.) Bercht. et Presl Herbarium voucher DFIP/88129 The leaves, whole or shredded or sometimes mixed with tobacco leaves (Tabaco == Nicotiana

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tabacum L.; Tabaco cimarron = Nicotiana paniculata L.), are used as a vulnerary for sores, ulcers and wounds that wont heal. The leaf decoction is used externally for poultices as an anti-inflammatory on traumatized body parts. The vapors of this decoction are used as a vaginal antiseptic in cases of dysmenhorrea and white secretions. The plant is claimed to be toxic if ingested. The colambo is a kind of non-poisonous snake which, when attacked, whips its tail. "This misha is used for bathing and rubbing cures (limpias) for sores, swellings and non-scarring wounds, but also for inhalations and vaginal ablutions with leaves in hot water. It is boiled until the water turns green and the vapor is used for the vagina. It is also used for women who have had a cold in the womb (white secretions are held to be the effect of a "cold"). For rubbing it is used with Timolina, alcohol and vinegar. Leaves are tied on swellings that are painful and don't ripen. The same happens with wounds, but tobacco is added. You must never drink it. The tree is four metres high. It is the tallest misha. Like the galga, the flower is white. The fruit is like a cucumber, with a smooth thin green skin. It is used macerated in alcohol. The seeds are small and black, like aji (Capsicum annuum L.) seeds. When the flower wilts the seeds take the shape of the colambo. It changes into a colambo at twelve at night: if you go and take a leaf and you'll take the head of a snake. They are custodian plants (cuidadoras). At sowing time the soil is mixed with tobacco, alcohol and the blood of some animals, and a spell is cast (se encanta) with perfumes, saying that if someone goes to gather it, the plant will let him, but it will give the person a stomach-ache. Before gathering it, I bathe myself, otherwise I get a headache. After using the misha, an antidote must be drunk (se arranca)."
MISHA OSO (BEAR)

"It has this name because when the flower wilts the seeds form the head of a bear. The flowers are the same (as the previous plant), but the colors are yellow, white and red. The seeds are arranged like those of the ajt rojoto (a variety of Capsicum annuum L.) and the fruit is like those of the aji rojoto. When the illness is complicated, it is combined with leaves from the seven mishas and is rubbed on (limpias). They are used for white secretions or bleeding by vaporizing it and doing ablutions. Five leaves to one litre of water are boiled for half an hour to an hour. It can also be a custodian plant. It guards by making a bear appear beneath the tree and the bear is seen when you drink San Pedro (decoction). After using it you must drink arranque." MISHA LEON (PuMA) Brugmansia arborea (L.) Lagerheim Herbarium voucher DFIP/88/32 The fresh leaves or their alcoholic tincture are used as a vulnerary and to cure pimples and other skin eruptions. The leaves, whole or shredded, are also valued externally, by applying them to aching areas, in cases of rheumatic inflammations or other traumas. "The flower is light brown like chocolate. It is a small plant, about two metres high. Because it is the strongest, it is used for serious illnesses, healing any sore or wound. It's tied on to the affected part of the body, or rubbed, or the juice squeezed onto the wound with Timolina and alcohol. Afterwards the effect is interrupted (se arranca). It is also used to treat swellings or when nerves get numb. The macerated plant with alcohol is also rubbed on in the morning and in the evening. The flower is the shape of a puma's tail. It changes into a puma." MISHA CURANDERA

Brugmansia arborea (L.) Lagerheim Herbarium voucher DFIP/88/32 The fresh leaves or their alcoholic tincture are used as a vulnerary and to cure pimples and other skin eruptions. It is claimed to be toxic if ingested and is considered the strongest misha. The leaves, whole or shredded, are also valued externally, by applying them to aching areas, in cases of rheumatic inflammations or other traumas.

Brugmansia candida (Pers.) Safford, hybrid Herbarium voucher DFIP/88/26 Using fresh leaves and the tincture, the plant is valued as an analgesic against traumatic or rheumatic pains. The fresh leaves are placed on the aching part of the body for eight days, changing them every so often to keep the heated part moist. (When dry, the leaves lose most of their curative properties.) The tincture is also used to relieve headaches by absorption through the nasal mucous and simultaneously rubbing the head and limbs with the same preparation;

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these administrations are to be repeated three times a day for three consecutive days. "Its fruit is like that of the passionflower (granadilla). The flower is dark yellow, appearing in May. It is kept in bottles of alcohol for a week, one leaf and broken twigs. The leaves are tied on for pain. It is not used dry. After a few hours the effect is interrupted (se arranca). Although dangerous to drink, it can be sipped through the nose from the palm of the hand and rubbed onto the head for headaches and whistling ears. Kept in a well-sealed large bottle with a leaf and alcohol, the leaves are applied for three nights. Misha curandera changes into a snake (vtborai,"
MISHA DEL INGA "OF THE INCA"

Brugmansia versicolor Lagerheim Herbarium voucher DFIP/88/34 This is the only misha taken internally. One cup of the tincture is prescribed as a sedative and general analgesic at bedtime. It is claimed to have hallucinogenic properties; therefore, its effect has to be stopped in the morning by the "arranque." The whole plant or the shredded leaves are applied locally, in cases of muscular pains of traumatic or rheumatic origin. "It's used for pains in the muscles and you go on a lot of diets after taking it: no cigarettes, no looking at fires, etc. You put a leaf in wine or otherwise a leaf with two flowers. The bottle must be transparent and you bury it for eight days. It's better to do it with the full moon. It's like misha rastrera. You make an offering of white sugar sprinkling it from a long way off by mouth and also a good perfume. If you concentrate, the misha reveals what you ask. You see colours: green, yellow and orange. It's like watching television. If you call someone by name he will appear (in the vision). You see if a person is good or bad. To find out if a person treats himself with herbs or medicine you can ask virtue (virtud: the powers or spirit of the plant). You drink it at night. Around six in the morning you grind a white rose in water, white maize powder and sugar, and you must not smoke or see fire."
DISCUSSION

Data collected on the ritual and therapeutic uses of mishas in Andean traditional medicine show the existence of a folk taxonomy of the genus Brugmansia. The people of this region

know the various species of Brugmansia, their morphology, and their physiological activities. In their folk systematics, the shamans associate the potency of each misha with names and virtues of animals (bear, lion, snake, hunting dog, bull) that best feature the myths of pre-Colombian cultures, and/or with therapeutic/magic properties (rastrera, from rastreo = to see things lost in space and in time; curandera, from curo = to treat ailments). It is important to note that, due to the strong toxic properties of mishas, their use is reserved only for curandero. Generally, the mishas are therapeutically used as topic anti-inflammatories and anti-rheumatics, but their major use is "to dream" (induce hallucinations). Moreover, the leaves of Brugmansia species are tied on the forehead "para ver" (to see). The obtention of altered states of consciousness is often obtained by topical application of the leaves of mishas; in recent literature it is possible to find such effects following transdermal applications of tropane alkaloids (Wilkinson 1987; Ziskind 1998). It is interesting to note .that in the European Middle Ages, the witches used Solanaceae species, rubbing these plants on their broomsticks before climbing upon them, thus achieving in their peculiar way a sensation of flight. The uses of mishas, both for psychotropic and therapeutic purposes, are undoubtedly due to the active principles of Brugmansias. In fact, the chemistry of this genus is primarily composed of active tropane alkaloids including scopolamine, atropine, aposcopolamine, hyosciamine, apoatropine, tropine, meteloidine, and over twenty others (Evans 1979). Tropane alkaloids are muscarinic antagonists that block neurotransmission across muscarinic cholinergic receptors. When administered internally in toxic doses, tropane alkaloids at first stimulate but eventually depress the central nervous system, giving rise to hallucinations, incoherent speech, delirium and convulsions, followed by stupor and coma. They paralyze muscles and secretory glands to the effect of stimulation of post-ganglionic, cholinergic nerve fibres. It is this action that causes dryness of throat and mouth. Atropine applied locally causes a slight paralysis of the sensor nerves, thus easing pain. This action probably relates to the frequent use of leaves in treating rheumatism (Brown and Taylor 2001). Solanaceae have been used as intoxicants since ancient times. Their alkaloids were the major ac-

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tive components of the ointments of witches, of medieval anesthetic, and modem poison for murder. The hallucinations and illusions provoked could explain the use of these plants in fortune-telling and religious rituals (Muller 1998). The use of mishas is strictly reserved for curanderos, due to their strong "hot" properties and the idea that Brugmansias are bad or dangerous. Only in particular cases do the curandero add mishas to the San Pedro decoction, in order to enhance its hallucinogenic effects. The vast majority of mishas, both those used for visionary purposes and those used for therapeutical purposes, traditionally involve a dieta. This consists in abstaining from certain foods as indicated in transcribed interviews. In the case of mishas used for divinatory purposes, the dieta includes abstaining from sex, even when it has not been explicitly mentioned. The plants are administered in different solvents. For mishas toro curandera, rastrera and del Inga, the solvent is usually wine; mishas galga, leon and curandera use cane alcohol; and for mishas ocultadora, colambo, and oso, water is prescribed. It is worth pointing out that with some mishas-s-tore curandera, rastrera, galga and ocultadora--external use is prescribed for divinatory purposes and the leaves are tied to the forehead or nape of the neck. Except for galga, for which only external use is prescribed along with the San Pedro decoction, other mishas used for visions are applied both externally and swallowed. Three mishas (toro curandera, rastrera, curandera) are taken through the nostrils, a method also used for tobacco (polia 1988). An antidote, or arranque, is used to interrupt the effects of mishas. It is the same substance that is used to "cut" the effect of the San Pedro before sunrise, as it is believed that light is very harmful for anyone under the influence of psychotropic substances. In its richest version, the arranque is made up of powdered white maize, white sugar, lime juice, wild honey, petals of wild flowers (roses and carnations), and drops of eau de cologne and spring water. In addition to being drunk, the arranque is often sprinkled on the hands, solar plexus and nape of the neck. All of the ingredients used to prepare the arranque are of a "cold" kind, and thus serve to neutralise the "hot" or "very hot" properties of mishas. In fact, in the Andean folk medicine of

northern Peru, medicinal plants are divided into two groups: plants with "hot virtues" and plants with "cold virtues." Following this division, a distinction is also made between infirmities which are either "hot" or "cold." "Hot infirmities" are claimed to be cured by "cold" plants and a "cold" vegetarian diet, while "cold infirmities" are claimed to be cured by "hot" plants and foods. Mishas and other plants that produce hallucinations are unanimously classified as "hot" plants (De Feo 2003). This classification is supported by available literature. In fact, Bristol (1969) and Girault (1984) reported Brugmansias as hot species. Comparing our data with previous available literature, some interesting observations are possible. The earliest description of a narcotic drink prepared with Brugmansia sanguinea in Peru was given by Tschudi (1846). The plant was called huaca and the drink was used to establish contact with the spirits of ancestors. Huaca stands for everything that had "power" and therefore manifests the presence of a spirit. In 1900, Humboldt and Bonpland reported the use of a narcotic drink known as tonga by priests in the Temple of the Sun of Sogamoza to the North of Bogota in Colombia (Lockwood 1979). The folk and ritual uses of two Brugmansia species (B. insignis and B. suaveolens) have been documented in several zones of the Arnazonic forest (Bianchi and Samorini 1993; Cabieses Molina 1990; Hunziker 1979; Lockwood 1979; McKenna, Luna and Towers 1986; Rivier and Lindgren 1972; Schultes 1979; Schultes and Hofmann 1973). The Jfvaros of the Upper Amazon basin in Eastern Ecuador use Brugmansia in adolescent initiation rites. After a ritual washing in sacred waterfalls, the young Jfvaros are sent off into the forest to observe periods of varying lengths of ritual solitude and fasting. During their isolation in the forest, the initiates imbibe an infusion of tobacco leaves to see a "spirit of the vision" (arutam), usually in animal form. If fasting and tobacco are not enough to establish contact with the arutam, a preparation of B. suaveolens macerated in water known as maikua is administered (Harner 1972). Brugmansia, mixed with maize beer (chicha) and tobacco leaves, was administered by Colombian Chibchas to drug slaves and wives before they were buried alive with their dead lords (Lockwood 1979). Amongst some of western Amazonian Indians of Ecuador, some Brugmansia

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species (probably B. candida and B. sanguinea) are valued as a correctional measure for children (Schultes 1979). In Andean zones, the ritual use of B. sanguinea and B. aurea was reported in the Sibundoy Valley, Colombia. Schultes (1955, 1963a,b, 1970, 1972a,b,c,d, 1979) cited six species of Brugmansia diffused in the Andean highlands from Colombia to Chile, while only B. suaveolens is distributed in the warmer lowlands. The same author reported an extreme atrophied form of a tree-datura, called Methysticodendron amesianum. Vegetatively it is extraordinarily atrophied, reduced to the very narrowly ligulate, marginally irregular leaves. If it be an atrophied tree-datura, its flowers are so altered as to make it impossible to assign it to any known species. Bristol (1966, 1969) recognized three species of Brugmansia (B. candida, B. sanguinea, B. suaveolens) and a number of cultivars of three species, used equally for medicinal and for psychotropic preparation by the Sibundoy Indians. The uses were related to their psychotropic, poisoning, and vermifuge activities (internally), and antirheumatic, suppurant in treatment of common cold (topically). The shamans (kamsa) use these psychotropic species to obtain a "vision" for divinatory-diagnostic purposes, but the same plant is also used for black magic. Significantly, the Colombian shamans consider the Brugmansia genus to be very "hot," similarly the Peruvian Andean shamans consider mishas to be hot (calidas) plants. In Sibundoy, Brugmansia use is not restricted to the shaman; few Indians, however, enjoy the hallucinations that are usually experienced. These are often described as visions of numerous large and poisonous snakes which the Sibundoy Indians fear. Later, Lockwood (1973, 1976, 1979) reviewed previous literature, citing five species of Brugmansia and a number of hybrids and cultivars. This author emphasized that disturbed visions produced by Datura ingestion are interpreted as spirit visitations, enabling the shaman to diagnose disease, discover theories, and prophecy the future. All Brugmansias used in the Andean zone appear to be cultigens and their ritual use has been documented in Mochica, Moche and Nazca ceramics (Cabieses Molina 1990). The plants show great variability in their morphology and cause some difficulties in their identification, due to

the fact that Brugmansia trees cross-breed very easily. On the other hand curanderos search for specimens with larger or stronger leaves (Bristol 1969; Friedberg 1963; Lockwood 1979; Schultes 1979). The rarer cultivars are owned by and cultivated in magical gardens of curanderos. The idea that Brugmansias are bad or dangerous is still prevalent among many peoples in South America, due probably to its former widespread association with witchcraft and the belief that sleeping in the shade of B. sanguinea would induce insanity (Lockwood 1979). Our data show that, still today, Brugmansia species represent a very important part of ritualtherapeutic practices in Northern Peruvian Andes, for both their medicinal and psychotropic properties. It is sometimes difficult to separate these two properties in a shamanistic religion where there is a characteristic emphasis on magic and the supernatural as causes of illnesses. Solanaceous plants have played major roles in the development of many cultures and civilizations, particularly in the Americas. In primitive societies of the Americas, man has utilized many of the valuable properties of Solanaceous species. No aspect of their use, however, has more deeply fascinated the American Indians than their mind-altering activities (Schultes 1979).
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Polia, M. 1987. Glosario del Curanderismo Andino del Departamento de Piura. Anthropologica 6:177238. ---.1988. Las lagunas de los Encantos-medicina tradicional andina del Peru septentrional. CePeCer, Lima, and references cited therein. Quesada, C. 1976. Diccionario Quechua CajamarcaCafiaris. Lima. Rivier, L., and J. E. Lindgren. 1972. Ayahuasca, the South American hallucinogenic drink: An ethnobotanical and chemical investigation. Economic Botany 26:101-129. Schultes, R. E. 1955. A new narcotic genus from the Amazon slope of the Colombian Andes. Botanical Museum Leaflets, Harvard University 17:1-11. - - - . 1963a. Hallucinogenic plants of the New World. Harvard Review 1:18-32. - - - . 1963b. Botanical sources of the New World narcotics. Psychedelic Review 1:145-146. - - - . 1970. The plant kingdom and hallucinogens. Bulletin of Narcotics 22:25-53. - - - . 1972a. An overview of hallucinogens in the Western hemisphere. Pages 3-54 in P. Furst, ed., Flesh of the gods: The ritual use of hallucinogens. Praeger, New York. - - - . 1972b. De Plantis Toxicariis e Mundo Novo Commentationes. X. New data on the Malpighiaceous narcotics of South America. Botanical Museum Leaflets, Harvard University 23:137-147. - - - . 1972c. De Plantis toxicariis ed Mundo Novo commentationes. XI. The ethnobotanical significance of additives to New World hallucinogens. Plant Science Bulletin 18:34-41. - - - . 1972d. The utilization of hallucinogens in primitive societies, use, misure or abuse? Pages 17-27 in" W. Keup, ed., Drug abuse. Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, IL. - - - . 1979. Solanaceous hallucinogens and their role in the development of the New World cultures. Pages 137-60 in J. G. Hawkes, R. N. Lester, and A. D. Shelding, eds., The biology and taxonomy of Solanaceae. Linnean Society Symposia Series no. 7. Academic Press, London, and references cited therein. - - - , and A. Hofmann. 1973. The botany and chemistry of hallucinogens. Charles C. Thompson, Springfield, IL. Shulgin, A. T. 1979. Chemistry of phenetylamines related to mescaline. Journal of Psychedelic Drugs 11:41-52. Smith, T. A. 1977. Phenethylamine and related compounds in plants. Phytochemistry 16:9-18. Tschudi, J. D. 1846. Peru: Reisenskizzen aus den Jahren 1832-1842. Vol. 2, 21-23, St. Gallen. Wilkinson, J. A. 1987. Side effects of transdermal scopolamine. Journal of Emergency Medicine 5: 387-392. Ziskind, A. A. 1988. Transdermal scopolamine-induced psychosis. Postgraduate Medicine 84:73-76.